Family of Choice
by ficwriterjet
Summary: This story is an alternate ending to Season 7 Episode 8. Enzo decides to help Lily and Damon defeat Julian, and then helps them put their family back together. Warning for spanking of an adult. Written for someone who wanted to see Damon on the receiving end of some discipline.


**Author's Note:** This story was written for the Lonely Prompt Challenge over on the LiveJournal group 'spanking_world'. It's an 'alternate ending' for Season 7 Episode 8, which would then diverge from cannon quite a bit. It fills the following prompt from 'dino76':

 _I'd love to see a Vampire Diaries fic where Damon is on the receiving end of some discipline. I'm not picky about who gets to dish it out :) I can picture Lily doing it for being so mean to her (I know he has reason to ;) but she's still his mother)._

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own any of these characters, and I'm not making any money from this story.

 **Warning:** Contains one consensual disciplinary spanking of an adult vampire, and one coerced (bordering on non-consensual) spanking of an adult vampire.

FAMILY OF CHOICE

Enzo was driving around the empty streets of Mystic Falls, pining over Lily, and wondering why she wouldn't choose to run away with him instead of facing off against Julian with her sons and the other Heretics. He was hurt, he was jealous, he was angry, and even though he kept trying to deny it he was also worried. Julian was an abusive psychopath, and he wouldn't put it past the man to kill them all.

Sighing, he pulled over to the side of the road, and gave himself a talk. "Stop behaving like a jilted lover, turn the car around, and go help her out. You know it's the right thing to do, even if she still doesn't want you when it's over."

Nodding to himself, he turned around, and sped back to the Salvatore home while trying to keep his internal dialogue positive. It was right to help Lily whether she wanted him or not, because she was his sire. It was right to help Lily whether she wanted him or not, because her son Damon had been his cellmate and only friend for five straight years in the 1950's while they suffered through daily torture. Sure Damon had left him to die at the end of those five years, but Enzo had gotten over that a while ago, because he'd always been more mature and forgiving than Damon. It was also right to help Lily whether she wanted him or not, because Julian needed to die, and Valerie and Stefan deserved vengeance for the unborn baby Julian had killed.

By the time he pulled up in front of the Salvatore estate, he was more than ready to do everything in his power to help. Carefully and quietly he opened the door and listened for voices. He heard Lily.

"Oh my God," Lily muttered, terror in her voice.

Then Julian's voice full of ire came next. "Things have grown out of hand Lily. Enough is enough."

"What are you doing? Let them go," Lily said softly.

Enzo moved silently through the house towards their location, but didn't go through the doorway or alert them to his presence yet. He wanted to kill Julian, but after fighting with him twice now, he knew he was no match for the older vampire; he needed surprise on his side if he were to succeed.

"I can't," Julian said, "Because if I do, this bloody cycle will continue. And I love you and the family we have built together far too much to let that happen. So one lives; one dies. You have to choose which."

Enzo had a pretty good guess as to which people Julian would force Lily to choose from. It would be Damon because he'd seriously hurt Lily recently, and it would be Valerie, because Julian didn't care much if she died.

"I will do no such thing," Lily said firmly.

"Oh, but you will." Julian said with certainty. "You have spent far too long trying to have it all. The lies. The violence. All because you wanted the impossible. The truth is you're either a Salvatore, or you're one of us. But you can not be both. Choose." After a pause he said it again. "Choose."

Enzo could hear Nora and Mary Louise arguing in the distance, but ignored them to focus on Lily.

"This isn't you," Lily said, her voice shaking. "This is not the man that I fell in love with. You used to be kind, gentle, funny. No. No, you're still in shock from the hell that you've been trapped in for so long."

"Hell didn't turn him evil Lily," Valerie said, "He was born this way."

"Okay," Damon sounded tired, "This vervain stings like a bitch and your family drama makes the prospect of death look like Disneyland. So please one swift stab straight through the heart. Let's get this over with. You chose your Heretics over Stefan and me every chance you had. Why stop now?"

Enzo shook his head. Damon was entirely too predictable. Of course he would choose this moment to goad his mother into a final betrayal, because if she staked him, Damon could justify his own actions from yesterday. He'd tried to kill Julian yesterday, even though he knew he would be killing his own mother in the process, because Julian's and Lily's lives had been magically linked.

"Lily please," Valerie begged.

"You're such a strong girl," Lily said softly, "I'm sorry I didn't see it sooner."

"My son. Please forgive me," Lily said.

"Kill me. Come on. Do it Lily," Damon said.

Enzo got ready to move, but then heard Lily's footsteps moving and paused.

"You're wrong about so many things." Lily said with newfound strength in her voice. "I never had the courage to tell you before. But I do now. You are wrong Julian. I can choose them both."

Then Enzo heard the sickening sound of a stake going through flesh, and knew without a doubt that Lily was sacrificing herself to save both her biological child and her adopted child.

"No! Lily!" Julian shouted. Enzo heard the sound of wood clattering to the floor as Julian continued to speak, "My sweet foolish girl, I've already unlinked us."

Those words spurred Enzo into action. With vampire strength, he sped into the room, and used the fact that Julian was utterly distracted to get the upper hand. Grabbing the stake off the floor, he rammed it through Julian's back and into his heart. When the man was momentarily paralyzed, Enzo shoved his entire arm into Julian's back, grabbed the older vampire's heart, and ripped it out, stake and all. Remembering that Julian had come back to life the last time Enzo had tried to kill him, he decided to make sure his enemy was dead this time. He grabbed Julian's head in both of his hands, twisted the older vampire's neck, and then with a primal yell, he tore the man's head completely off.

Once that had been taken care of, he dropped the severed head, shoved the rest of the body to the side, and knelt down beside Lily.

"Lily?" he said gently, picking her upper half up off the floor and into his arms.

"You didn't leave," she said with awe.

"How could I leave you in your time of need?" he asked with a little smile and kissed her forehead.

"Gross," Damon muttered in the background.

Ignoring him, Enzo looked down at the gaping wound in Lily's chest. "Why aren't you healing?"

"I don't know," her voice was weak. "It feels like the stake is still in me."

Stefan and Nora walked in, and Nora froze taking in Julian's dead body. Stefan rushed to his mother's other side and said, "Lily?"

She tried to give him a reassuring smile while gripping his hand, but it was more of a grimace than a smile.

Looking at Stefan, Enzo said, "Go untie Valerie. Slivers of the stake must still be inside Lily's heart. We'll need magic to get them out."

While Stefan was doing that, Enzo turned to Nora and said, "Come over here, and work with Valerie to get the bits of wood out of Lily's heart."

Nora's eyes remained on Julian's body, and she didn't move.

Raising his voice, Enzo said, "Nora! Do you want to lose both parents today?"

Snapping out of her stupor, Nora rushed to Lily's side, and inspected the wound. When Valerie came over as well, Enzo shifted over to give the witches room to work.

The women held their hands above Lily's wound, chanted some words, and then Lily whimpered as little slivers of wood worked their way out of her chest and hovered in the air by Nora's hand. The whole process took less than thirty seconds, and as soon as all the slivers were out, Lily's vampire healing took over.

Nora waved the slivers to the side, and they scattered across the floor.

"There you go," Enzo said once he saw her wound starting to heal. He leaned down and gently kissed her lips. "You'll be good as new in just a few minutes."

"Jesus," Damon muttered, "Someone please untie me or at least have the courtesy to snap my neck so I don't have to watch this sickening display."

Enzo's eyes narrowed on Damon's face. "Stop being a dick, mate. Your mother just sacrificed herself for you."

"Yeah? Well no one asked her to!" Damon yelled, and struggled in his ropes.

Shaking his head, Enzo looked at Stefan and said, "Untie him and get him out of here before I say some things I might regret."

Stefan started untying Damon, and as soon as the ropes were loose, Damon was up out of the chair and out the door with vampire speed.

"Mom?" Stefan asked. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Lily nodded, "I'm okay, I can feel it healing. Go keep an eye on your brother, and we'll talk tomorrow."

Once Stefan had left, Enzo carefully helped Lily to her feet, and then eased her into a vacant chair.

A loud wail made everyone turn towards the doorway. Mary Louise was staring at Julian's body and shaking her head. She put a hand over her mouth, and leaned against the doorframe as tears started rolling down her face.

Lily got to her feet, rushed over to the blond vampire, and pulled her into a strong hug, "I know, darling," she murmured as she offered comfort.

Mary Louise's earlier scream also brought Beau. He rushed in, but stopped short when he saw the body.

Enzo looked around at this little family of choice that he'd just broken, and decided they were all too shell shocked to make decisions. He cleared his throat and said, "We'll need to bury Julian with the head and heart separate from the body."

Mary Louise cried harder, while Nora muttered, "He deserved what he got, Mary Louise, stop your sniveling."

Lily looked at Nora with disapproval. "Julian may have been cruel at times, and at the end he was clearly insane, but that doesn't change the fact that he was sweet and loving to all of us at times. There's no shame in mourning him." She turned her eyes to Valerie, "There's also no shame in being glad that he's gone."

Enzo said softly, "Why don't you take Mary Louise upstairs, Lily? I'll take care of the body."

She nodded and started walking away with the distraught girl.

"I'll help you bury him," Valerie said.

Beau walked up to them and nodded before pointing to the body.

Nora shook her head, and muttered, "I think I need to be alone."

"That's fine," Enzo said. "We've got this covered."

Over the next half an hour, Enzo, Beau, and Valerie buried the body. When they were done, Beau went to the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of whisky. He held it up, along with three glasses.

"None for me," Enzo said, "But thanks."

Valerie sat down and said, "I'll take two."

Enzo left them to their drinking, and went upstairs to find Lily. He no longer heard weeping, so he had to check room by room until he found them. Mary Louise was curled up into a ball on the bed she clearly shared with Nora most of the time. There were tear streaks on her face, but her features had smoothed out in sleep. Lily was sitting on the side of the bed next to her, rubbing circles on the younger woman's back. When Lily saw Enzo, she put a finger to her lips, signaling him to be quiet, and then carefully stood and tiptoed over to him. They walked out, and shut the door behind them.

Once they were alone in the hall, Enzo opened his mouth to speak, but she leaned in and kissed him before any words came out. He pulled her close, and deepened the kiss, needing it more than ever after watching her almost die.

After several moments, she broke off the kiss, took his hand in hers, and led him to the master bedroom. She shut the door behind them, led him to the bed, and then turned her back to him. "Unzip me?" she said.

Conflicted, he paused. Yes he wanted her. In fact, he was desperate to have her. But he didn't just want her one night, he wanted her every night, and he didn't want her to sleep with him simply because she was overly emotional, and then regret it the next day.

She turned her head to look over her shoulder. "Have you changed your mind?" she asked.

"About us? Not in a million years." He leaned in and gently kissed her neck. "I just don't want to move too fast, and tonight was hard on everyone, especially you."

She turned to face him, and put her arms around his shoulders. "I stood in that bookstore for half an hour talking myself out of going after you, and I almost failed. I want you just as much as you want me." She looked down at the floor and said, "I'm not a modern day woman, Lorenzo. At least not the kind I've read about on that Internet Nora showed me." She made eye contact again. "Yes I just lost Julian less than an hour ago, but I don't want to be without a man. I want a strong partner who will take care of me. I want a partner who will protect me and put our family first above all others. My sons were right about me having a type, but they were wrong about it being an abuser. I want a dominant leader. Someone I can look up to. Someone who can keep his temper in check, and do the right thing, even when it's not what he wants to do. From everything I've seen, that's the type of man you are. If you agree, then I don't want to wait."

Feeling emboldened and empowered by her little speech, Enzo pulled her into a crushing kiss, and started unzipping her dress at the same time. She responded in kind by unbuttoning his shirt. He eased her onto the bed, and continued to undress her.

# # #

Enzo woke to the feeling of fingertips in his hair. He opened his eyes and smiled at Lily. They were lying side by side on the bed, and when she saw his eyes open, her fingers stilled.

"Morning, love," he mumbled.

"Good morning."

He put a hand on her naked hip, and pulled her close so they were pressed together. "Any regrets about last night?" he asked, kissing her forehead.

"No," she said honestly, and then a blush stained her cheeks and she looked at a spot over his shoulder as she said, "It was… highly educational."

He chuckled. "You may not be a modern day woman, but there are benefits to being with a modern day man. Being a considerate and experienced lover is part of that." He ducked his head under the covers, and started trailing kisses down her stomach in between words. "Are you ready for round three?" he asked, his lips just below her navel.

A little moan came out of her, and she said, "As much as I would enjoy that, I think we need to talk first."

Those words stopped him short, and he moved his head back to the pillow so they could talk. He held her hand in his and said, "Okay, let's talk."

"We need to talk about our future. Not just you and me, the future of our whole family, and that has to include my sons. Julian said I couldn't have it all, and maybe he was right, but I have to at least try."

"Julian wasn't right." Enzo said firmly. "You absolutely can have it all. No, you _will_ have it all."

Lily shook her head and her eyes became shiny with unshed tears. "I don't know if that's possible. Every time I look in Damon's face, all I see is fierce hatred. He doesn't care if I'm dead or alive. In fact, I believe he would prefer it if I were dead."

He squeezed her hand gently. "I know Damon. Probably better than anyone else on earth, except maybe Bonnie, because we were stuck side by side in cells for five long years with nothing to do but talk to pass the time. I've heard every story that man has to tell, and I can say with absolute certainty that he loves you Lily."

Frowning, she shook her head again. "He loved me back then, because he didn't know that I was still alive, and that I left him and his brother with their father."

"He's well and truly angry about that, yes, but that doesn't mean he can't ever forgive you."

"Maybe he could forgive me for that, but not for the spell that took Elena away from him until Bonnie dies."

Enzo pushed himself into a sitting position with his back against the headboard and patted the spot right next to him. "Come here, and let me tell you my vision for our future. If you can help me take over Julian's place with the Heretics, I can help you win back your sons. Stefan already wants to be part of the family, and I know exactly how to get Damon on board, too. But it's going to take honesty, sacrifice, and a lot of love and patience on your part, and mine."

She snuggled up next to him, and together they made plans for their future.

# # #

Three hours later, Enzo was sitting in the living room beside the fireplace in a chair he'd brought in from the dinning room. The couch, the loveseat, and a couple of easy chairs had been pushed around to form a semi-circle, with Enzo sitting in front of them all. The Heretics were all there with Beau, Nora, and Valerie sitting on the couch, and Mary Louise sitting on the loveseat next to Lily.

Nora looked at her watch again and sighed loudly.

"Maybe you should call again." Lily said.

Enzo shook his head. "Stefan said they'd be here. I'm sure it's no easy task to talk Damon into coming. Stefan will call back if he needs help."

A few seconds later, the doorbell rang, and Enzo stood with a smile. "Speak of the devil." He went to the door and opened it to see a wary but hopeful Stefan and an irritated and sullen Damon. He opened it wide and said, "Come in."

"This better be important," Damon muttered. "I have some serious drinking to do."

Enzo led them to the living room, took his seat, and gestured towards the two easy chairs that were side by side. "Have a seat."

Stefan went to sit, but Damon glared at the chair arrangement, his mother, and then at Enzo. "I'll stand, thanks."

"Damon," Stefan pleaded with puppy dog eyes. "You said you'd hear them out."

"Fine." He went and sat next to his brother, slouched down in his seat, and gave Enzo his best 'I'm bored' expression.

"Thank you," Enzo said. He stood and paced a bit while he spoke. "For any of you who might not have figured it out, Lily and I are a couple now." Damon groaned with disgust. Enzo ignored him and continued. "We spent the morning discussing our plans for the future. My entire life, the only thing I've ever truly wanted was a family. People I could love, support, and count on to be there for me when I needed help. I'm sure Damon can confirm this for those of you who might not believe it." He turned to Damon with a raised eyebrow.

Damon found it difficult to keep his air of indifference when thinking about all the times he'd heard Enzo talking about that very thing. "I don't see what that has to do with anything," he said with a frown

"How often did we talk about what we were going to do once we escaped? How often did I mention wanting a family?"

"I don't know, a lot!" Damon glared at him. "On and on about family this and family that. It's just as irritating now as it was then."

Turning to look at the others, Enzo said, "I know it's no longer the eighteen hundreds, but we can't pretend that we're not all from that era. Damon, Stefan, and I have had a lot more practice at fitting in to this time period than the rest of you, but there are some fundamental beliefs that simply haven't changed for me over the years. One of them is my belief that a family needs a leader to thrive. Your leader is gone because I killed him, and now I'm going to be taking his place as leader of this little family."

"You can't just decide that!" Mary Louise said.

Instead of answering her directly, Enzo said, "Julian was your leader for many years, but he wasn't good at the job. As long as you agreed with his every whim, he would dote on you to excess. But if you ever disagreed or stepped out of line, he was overly harsh and manipulative."

"Under my leadership, there will be no ridiculous doting, but I will be proud of your actual accomplishments. There will be no manipulations, only complete honesty, even when it's painful. There will be no favoritism; I will treat you all equally and fairly. There will be no verbal or physical abuse, but there will be punishment for breaking the rules."

"Punishment?" Valerie asked. "What kind of punishment?"

"What kind of rules?" Nora asked.

"I'm glad you asked, Nora." Enzo held up a hand. He wiggled his fingers and said, "Five rules." He tucked one finger down with each rule he listed.

"Honesty. I expect complete honesty, even if you've done something wrong, and you know you'll be punished. Punishment isn't about hurting you, it's about helping you learn and do better in the future. Lying will not be tolerated."

"No killing humans. You will all learn to control your hunger and eat from humans without killing them so that Mystic Falls can go back to the way it was before your arrival."

"No leaving home without a word. You're free to come and go as you please, but if you're going to be away for more than twenty-four hours, you let me or Lily know where you'll be and when you'll be home."

"No fighting amongst yourselves. I don't mean normal family bickering, I mean coming to physical blows. If you need mediation for a problem, you come to me and we'll work it out."

"And lastly, obedience with a modicum of respect. I'm not talking about blind obedience to my every whim, I'm talking about doing your best to follow the big rules and give this a chance to work while we're getting to know each other. I will always treat each of you with respect, and I expect the same treatment in return."

He turned to Valerie and said, "As for punishment, unless it's something extreme, you can expect to be restricted to the house, or assigned unpleasant chores. For example," he focused on the blond girl next to Lily, "Mary Louise, come up here for a moment, please."

The girl looked positively terrified. She gripped Lily's hand tight, and shook her head. Lily patted her hand. "It's okay," Lily said soothingly before nudging her up off the loveseat.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Enzo said, and waved her closer. Once she was within reaching distance, he pulled her to his side, turned her to face her family, and wrapped an arm around her waist in comfort.

Facing the rest of the Heretics, he said, "Mary Louise betrayed you all by letting Juilan go after you'd captured him. I know some of you are very angry with her, but I would ask that you try to remember that she loved him like a father, and show some understanding, compassion, and forgiveness."

He turned her so she was facing him, and took both of her hands in his. "That being said, you knew you were going against the family's wishes, so I believe a punishment is in order. I don't know you well enough to know what will work best for you, so I'm going to give you two options. You can either do everyone's laundry for a month, or you can be restricted to the house for a month. I want you to truly think it over, and tell me which one sounds the most unpleasant."

"She never wants to go anywhere," Nora muttered. "Staying home wouldn't be a punishment."

"Nora," Enzo said, disappointment coating his voice, "It's very unkind of you to say that before Mary Louise has even had a chance to decide for herself."

Nora's eyes opened wide, and her mouth opened a couple of times, but nothing came out.

Enzo turned back to Mary Louise and said, "Be honest. Which will be more of a punishment?"

"Laundry," she muttered turning her eyes to the floor.

"Good girl." He put his finger under her chin to tilt it up, until her eyes met his.

"I want you to do at least one load every day for a month. But once things are clean and folded, you don't put them away yourself, you personally hand them to whichever family member they belong to, and say something kind to them to let them know you love them. Is that understood?"

She nodded, looking less terrified, and more confused.

"Excellent, then we'll consider the matter closed." He pulled her into a quick hug, patted her back, and then gently pushed her towards the loveseat. "Go back and sit down."

Scowling, Damon said, "Your _Father Knows Best_ routine is making me queasy, Enzo. Why exactly are Stefan and I here? You said you had something important to tell us over the phone. I fail to see how your family nonsense is important."

"It's important because you and Stefan are part of the family, and Lily and I would like you both to move back into the house today."

Damon blinked a couple of times, looked over at his mother who attempted a smile, and then back to Enzo. Damon's eyes narrowed into slits and he hissed, "I'll move back when she's dead."

Refusing to get perturbed, Enzo sat in his chair by the fire and said with a smirk, "Technically, she's already dead. We all are, mate."

Damon rolled his eyes.

"But that does bring us to the other reason you're here." Enzo turned to his lover and held out his hand. "Lily."

She walked over, stood by his side, and held his hand. He looked up at her and said gently, "You hurt both of your sons by leaving them with an abusive father when they were children. You made a deal with Kai that eventually linked Bonnie and Elena, essentially taking Elena away from Damon for years, and away from Bonnie forever. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

She looked over at Damon and said, "If I could go back and do it again, I'd take you both with me instead of leaving you with Giuseppe. I didn't want to leave you, but I was afraid I would hurt you, because I couldn't control my hunger back then. I can't change the past, but I can change the future. I promise to use all of my resources, all of our resources…" she gestured to the witches on the couch "…to find a way to bring Elena back to you Damon, and to Bonnie."

Damon's eyes opened wide with shock for a millisecond, before they narrowed. He scowled and muttered, "Too little, too late."

"Very good, love," Enzo said to Lily. "Now to the punishment."

She looked around the room and said, "Enzo and I have spoken about this at length, and we both agreed this was the best course of action for all involved. I'm a willing participant, not a victim."

The tension was palpable in the room as the other vampires waited to see what he was about to do.

Enzo looked at Valerie specifically and said, "For extremely bad behavior, I tend to be more old school with punishment. I personally wouldn't classify it as being physically or mentally abusive. However, considering your past specifically, you, and only you, can opt out of this particular punishment if it ever comes to that."

He gently pulled Lily across his lap, wrapped an arm around her waist, and started spanking. Loud claps of hand hitting cloth covered bottom ricocheted around the room.

"How is this not a beating!" Valerie demanded.

Enzo continued to spank, but darted his eyes to Valerie's. "I'm not beating her, I'm spanking her, and you've been around long enough to know that there is a difference. If she were pregnant, this wouldn't cause her to lose her child. If you honestly can't see the difference, you may go to your room until it's over." He focused back on the task at hand.

Frowning, Valerie crossed her arms, leaned back against the couch, and refused to look at what was happening, but didn't leave.

"That's enough," Stefan said loudly, and tried to stand up, but Damon grabbed his shirt and yanked him back down. Stefan scowled at Damon, but Damon simply shook his head and kept his eyes focused on Lily.

It took a full minute of continuous spanking for Lily's silent calm to break. A small gasp came out of her and then an almost imperceptible shift in her right leg. Over the next full minute she deteriorated into hissing and yelping with pain and squirming to get away.

Unable to take it any longer, Stefan stood up and shouted, "You're as bad as our father!"

Damon stood, grabbed Stefan's arm, and gave him a rough shake. "Are you kidding me right now, Stefan?" He pointed at their mother and yelled to be heard over the continued slaps, "This is completely different. How many times did I tell you to read Fifty Shades? You're so vanilla I can barely believe we're related. She is a _willing participant_ you idiot. She never was with our father. So sit your ass down, and shut up." He shoved Stefan down a bit more roughly than was technically necessary, and sat down himself to watch.

It didn't take long for Lily's struggling to get desperate, and for the tears to start.

"Damon," Stefan said with desperation, unable to believe that his brother could be okay with this.

"She made her bed. She can lie in it," he muttered.

Enzo kept slapping, aiming a little lower where he knew it would hurt more, and tried to surreptitiously keep an eye on Damon's reactions. Within seconds of this new onslaught of lower smacks, Lily started wailing, and soon hung limp over his lap. He kept at it for another eight smacks before he finally saw Damon's eyes shift away from his mother while his jaw clenched.

Knowing that was the sign he'd been waiting for, Enzo stopped spanking, and carefully lifted Lily up into his arms. "There, there now, love. All done. You took that so well. I'm so proud of you for going through with it." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and buried her face in his chest, while he rubbed her back, and kissed the top of her head.

Speaking softly he added, "As far as I'm concerned, you're completely forgiven, and I'm sure given time Damon will forgive you, too. Especially once we figure out a way to get Elena back." She nodded against his chest. "I'm going to take you over to Mary Louise, so we can get back to the family meeting, okay?"

"Okay," she said, her voice wavering with more tears.

"Good girl." He picked her up in his arms, stood, and carried her over to the loveseat. He laid her on her side, with her head in Mary Louise's lap. "You lie here and rest until your body is done healing itself."

He went back to his chair, turned towards Damon, held out his hand and said, "Your turn."

Damon froze before glaring at Enzo. "My turn to spank her?"

"Nice try, but no. You know that's not what I'm talking about, mate. It's your turn to get spanked."

"Yeah," Damon scoffed, "I know my mother likes that kind of thing in her men, but I'm gonna have to pass."

"You deserve it, and you know it. You tried to kill your mother, and whether you're ready to admit it or not, that's something you're going to eventually regret. I know you Damon. You may have your brother, your mother, and all of your friends in Mystic Falls fooled, but you can't fool me. You're hurt, and you're angry, and you have every right to be, but lashing out the way you have been isn't helpful. Elena certainly wouldn't want you to…"

"Don't bring Elena into this!" Damon stood as he shouted, and looked ready to strike out at anyone and anything.

Refusing to raise his own voice, or to stand, Enzo stayed calm. "Tell me about your seventh birthday, Damon."

With no one rising to the bait, Damon was stuck standing alone with his frustration, and nothing to hit. "What?"

"You told me the story every year on your birthday. What did your mother do for you on your seventh birthday?"

"No," Damon said. "I'm not going down memory lane with you, Enzo, because for every happy story, there are ten bad ones!"

"Care to wager on that, Damon? I'll bet I could come up with at least three happy stories for every single one of the bad ones, because I've heard them all, and I've counted them up."

"It doesn't matter!" Damon shouted. "That was before I knew she was alive! I'm not letting you spank me! It's beyond ridiculous! I'm not part of this twisted family, and I never will be!"

Enzo shook his head. "You are part of this family, whether you want to be or not, because you and I were family long before I knew that my sire was your mother. After everything we suffered together I'll always consider you my brother. My younger brother who is sorely in need of guidance."

"I'm over thirty years older than you," Damon muttered, unable to refute the fact that they were family.

Enzo tried not to smirk at the old argument they used to have. He knew Damon was slowly giving in, but it was a struggle for him. "Not in human years, mate."

"I'm not your 'mate', and in human years you're only two years older."

Playing the ace up his sleeve, Enzo said the one thing that he knew would force Damon's hand. "Even if you don't believe we're family. Even if you don't believe you're deserving of punishment. Even if you don't want to mend fences with your mother. You're going to come over here and let me spank you, because _you owe me_." He stood for the first time since they started talking, spoke firmly, and looked head on into Damon's eyes. "You left me in that cage to die in a fire in 1958 after _five years_ of camaraderie."

Enzo saw pure anguish cross Damon's face before he darted his eyes to the floor,

Softening his voice, Enzo said, "That decision was so painful for you that you had to shut off your humanity to do it." He slowly walked over to the other man and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm offering you redemption, Damon. I'm offering you a family that will show you the kindness and love that you've always wanted."

Damon didn't look in Enzo's eyes, but his head tilted up ever so slightly, and then went back down again in a very tiny nod.

"Over here, soldier," Enzo said as he pulled Damon towards the chair, harkening back to their first meeting, and putting Damon in the right frame of mind to accept what was about to happen.

When Enzo sat and tried to pull Damon over his lap, the other man balked, and pulled back so that he remained upright. "Not like _this_ ," he said desperately.

"Yes like this, Damon. Not because I'm trying to humiliate you, but because we're brothers, and I know for a fact that this is how you spanked Stefan the three times it happened."

Damon glared down at him and hissed, "Because he was thirteen the last time."

"No," Enzo said, "Not just because he was thirteen, and not just because your father never did it this way, but because he's your brother and you love him."

Unable to accept all the emotions that were going through him, Damon went with his most reliable defense mechanism, sarcastic anger. "So you're claiming to be my older brother _and_ you're fucking my mother. How incestuous is that?"

Several gasps could be heard from the couch, but neither man looked over. Enzo shook his head, took a deep calming breath, and said, "If you're trying to goad me into beating you the way your father would have, it's not going to happen. That kind of vulgarity is beneath you, and you should be ashamed of yourself for being so crass in front of the women."

A faint blush stained Damon's cheeks, but he refused to apologize.

"Over my knee, little brother," Enzo said while using a bit more force to yank Damon forward and down so that he fell across his lap.

Damon held himself completely still, every muscle in his body tense, but Enzo considered it a win, because he wasn't fighting to get up. Enzo wrapped an arm around Damon's waist to hold him still, and started slapping his backside. He knew the black jeans Damon had on would offer some protection, but that wouldn't matter. Enzo had seen Damon tortured again and again over their five years together, and he knew there was no way the kind of spanking he was planning to deliver could cause enough pain to break the other man, with or without his jeans on. At best it could eventually make him cry, but that would be a physical reaction, not an emotional one. If he wanted to truly make Damon accept this situation and actually benefit from it, it would have to be through words.

As he spanked, he said, "Since you refused to tell me about your seventh birthday, I'll tell you about it." The only sign that Damon had even heard him was an audible intake of breath. Enzo forged on, "Your mother was half way through a difficult pregnancy, and your father had caught you playing with his lighter the day before. After switching you for it, instead of considering you punished enough like any decent father would have, he called off the plans you'd both made to go to town together for your birthday. He left you home and went to town by himself, and then what did your mother do?"

Enzo paused in the spanking and waited for a response.

After a long stretch of silence, Damon said softly, "She let me name the baby."

They heard Stefan gasp, "What?"

Enzo nodded and started spanking again. "Yes she did. And then?"

"Talked to me for hours about what a good older brother I was going to be, and how I had to help her protect the baby so that he or she would become a good person like Mom… like she knew I was."

"Very good," Enzo said with pride. "Now let's talk about the time you accidentally broke the crystal wine goblet when you were ten." Damon let out a groan that turned into a whine.

"I know," Enzo said sympathetically while swatting, "It's difficult to think about all the times your mother showed you love, because you want to hold onto your hate, but that hate won't fix your childhood, and it won't bring Elena back."

"Don't," Damon said, but it wasn't a demand as much as it was a plea.

Shaking his head, Enzo continued with the words and the smacks. "You and Stefan were roughhousing in the kitchen while your mother was cooking. You were giving him a piggyback ride, and pretending to be a horse galloping around the table. You accidentally bumped into the hutch where your mother displayed the good china and the crystal. Luckily for all of you only one glass fell over and cracked."

Enzo paused in his spanking again and said, "What did your mother do?"

There were several seconds of silence, and Enzo could smell tears. Damon's voice was quiet but steady when he spoke. "She ushered me and Stefan under the kitchen table, and when father came in she told him she'd accidentally bumped it. He ranted and smashed all the crystal, before slapping her and telling her to clean it up."

"And what did she say to you once he was gone?"

When Damon answered, his voice was barely audible. "She said it wasn't my fault. It was just an accident, and not to cry because she hated that crystal anyway."

"How many times do you think your mother took a beating for you over the years?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "At least six, probably a lot more. Too many times."

"No," Lily said from across the room. "It wasn't enough times."

"Shut up!" Damon yelled, and smashed his fist on the floor hard enough to crack the wood under the Oriental rug.

A displeased grunt came out of Enzo and he started spanking again. "There's that anger you're trying so desperately to hold onto. Your mother, the woman who gave birth to you, fed you, clothed you, and did her best to protect you from the monster you all lived with does _not_ deserve so much hatred, Damon. You tried to _kill_ her, and then put on a mask of indifference about her suffering. That sounds like something your father would have done."

"I am nothing like my father!" Damon roared, and did his best to get up off Enzo's lap, but Enzo held tight, and pulled Damon further over his lap so that Damon couldn't get his feet on the floor for leverage.

Once the struggling slowed down, Enzo moved the slaps to Damon's upper thighs and said in a calm voice, "If you're nothing like your father, then admit your mistakes, apologize with sincerity, and make amends for what you've done."

After several seconds of heavy swats, Damon said in a strained voice. "She hurt Elena and Bonnie."

"I know," Enzo said, his gentle voice in conflict with the harsh whacks his hand delivered. "But she's been punished, she's apologized, and she's going to try her best to make amends. Now it's your turn to do the same."

"Fine! I'm sorry!" Damon yelled, his voice full of rage.

Enzo shook his head and continued to spank. "That was a piss poor apology, mate. You can do better."

"Okay!" he said with slightly less anger, "I'm sorry."

Enzo could tell Damon was near his breaking point. His body was flinching slightly with each blow, and his breathing was ragged.

"Very good," Enzo praised while spanking, "Now look your mother in the eye, and tell her you're sorry."

Slowly Damon lifted his head, and turned it to the side. When Lily saw the silent tears, she put a hand over her heart, and started to cry as well.

"I… I'm sorry." He said with sincerity while keeping eye contact, "I'm so… so sorry, Mom," His voice broke and he turned his head back towards the floor as his shoulders started to shake.

"Well done," Enzo said, but kept slapping Damon's backside. "Now you owe me an apology as well, and then you'll be forgiven."

"I'm sorry," Damon whispered through his tears with utter sincerity. "I'm sorry I left you there."

Enzo finally stopped spanking, and gently patted Damon's back. "I know you are, mate, and I forgive you. I forgive you for trying to kill Lily, and I forgive you for leaving me in that cage. Do you know why?"

Damon shook his head, wiped at his face with the back of his hand, and tried to stop crying without success.

Enzo stood, lifted Damon up into a standing position with him, and pulled him into a hug. "Because you're the brother I chose all those years ago, and you're the brother I still choose today."

Damon hugged him back, and held on so tight that it was somewhat painful, but Enzo wasn't about to complain. He squeezed back just as tightly and said, "We're family whether you want to admit it or not, and I love you. Lily and I want you and Stefan to move back in here with us, and we'll all work together to get Elena back. Okay?"

"Okay," Damon's voice was shaky, but sincere.

Keeping his arms around Damon, Enzo looked over at Stefan and said, "What do you say, Stefan? Will you move in, too?"

Stefan turned to smile at his mother and said, "Yes, I will."

"Excellent." Enzo patted Damon's back a couple of times and let him go. Damon wiped at his face with both hands, and kept his back to the room.

Lily stood, grabbed a couple of tissues from the box on the table beside the couch, and walked towards her oldest son. He tensed as he heard her footsteps, but didn't turn around.

"Damon?"

After a deep breath, he slowly turned to face her. She held the tissues out to him. Instead of taking them, he pulled her into a bone-crushing hug, and started to cry again.

She closed her eyes, held him close, and ran her fingers through his hair. "I know. My sweet boy, I know. I'm sorry for all of it, and we're going to set things right. I promise."

It took several moments of Lily muttering reassurances in his ear, but eventually Damon was able to compose himself. He let her go, took the tissues, and cleaned up his face as well as he could.

Enzo put an arm around Lily's waist, and said to Damon, "Why don't you two go home and pack your stuff, so you can be all moved in by nightfall. Then you and I will take the others out hunting one at a time to show them how to drink their fill without killing. And tomorrow morning we'll invite Bonnie over and we can all brainstorm ideas for saving Elena."

With a small groan Damon muttered, "Bonnie. How am I supposed to explain moving back here to her?"

"Tell her the truth," Enzo said. "I plan to."

"She'll laugh her ass off," Damon muttered.

Stefan chuckled. "I'm sure she'll want an excruciatingly detailed play by play."

"Shut up!" Damon said, glaring at his brother. "No way in hell is anyone allowed to tell Bon-Bon about this." He turned his glare to Enzo.

Enzo shook his head, "You know you'll tell her yourself eventually, mate, she's your best friend. Just get it over with."

Damon continued to glare at Enzo for a full three seconds before looking away, and mumbling with a pout, "I need a drink."

Stefan slapped him on the back and said, "Come on, brother. Let's go pack."

Damon followed him out while demanding a trip to the liquor store on the way home.

Enzo looked at the rest of his new family members and said, "Any questions, concerns, issues, dissension in the ranks?"

The four Gemini witches looked at each other, and seemed to come to an understanding without any words. Eventually Nora spoke for everyone. "Not yet. We're all willing to give it a go if it's what Lily wants. You seem…"

"…like the kind of leader we all wanted Julian to be." Mary Louise finished for her.

The two girls smiled at each other, before Nora turned back to Enzo. "Exactly. A good leader."

"Thank you," Enzo said sincerely. "I'll do my best to do right by all of you. Speaking of which," he turned to Beau, "Have you ever heard of American Sign Language?"

The mute man shook his head.

"Well, get ready to be the talkative one in our little family." He turned to Nora and said, "Bring me your laptop, and I'll pull up a video of it. I expect us all to learn it by the end of the month."

While Nora went to get her laptop, Lily leaned into Enzo and whispered in his ear, "Thank you."

He leaned in to kiss her and said, "No love, thank you. You've given me the family that I've always wanted. I couldn't be happier."

They shared one more kiss before Nora came back with her laptop, and soon they were all watching a woman signing the alphabet.

The End


End file.
